5 reasons why gift certificates make the best Christmas gift ever

Gift certificates are the best— your recipient will be so busy thinking of all the things that piece of cartolina/plastic from her favorite store can afford her, to even know it was a last-minute ditch effort.

Gifted.ph is a one-stop online shop for all things GCs. There are 80 brands to choose from, ranging from bookstores (FullyBooked and National) to retail brands (Bench and Cura V) to restaurants (Alba, Gino’s Brickoven Pizza, and Chotto Matte) to things like A1 driving and Benel Archery. The GCs are in increments of P500 and, depending on the brand, can go all the way up to P5,000.

You purchase it online and email it to your friend, which he should then print and bring to the merchant to avail of your gifticle. Pretty neat, right?

Truth be told, we’d also much rather receive a GC than yet another abubot we wouldn’t know what to make of. Should we give you our reasons? Of course, we do!

1. There is a sense of thoughtfulness to it. It may not be personalized but receiving a GC with your favorite store emblazoned on it implies a sense of thoughtfulness, as though the giver knows what you want, nay, knows you very well in fact.

2. There is a beautiful sense of freedom to it. Nobody wants to live with yet another mug! Gift certificates, especially if it’s from your favorite brand, allow the you to choose things you actually like and need and have a use for. Even if it’s, say, a modest P500 GC, if it’s from the recipient’s favorite brand, s/he will know exactly how to spend it.

3. There is a sense of leisure and flexibility to it. Unless there was a six-month or one-year validity to it—and even then, actually—you don’t have to get it right away. You can wait for your favorite author’s upcoming book, or until the new season at your favorite brand. Or for when your yoga subscription has ended.

4. GCs are easy to re-gift. No need to rewrap, here. Just give it in its original envelope and watch a smile creep up the receiver’s face. Just make sure you don’t have your name on it!

5. There is a sense of overcompensation to it. Yes, it might be a lazy gift, but that’s its genius. The giver will want to make up for his laziness by giving you the biggest increment possible. GCs have price tags attached to it, proudly broadcasting how galante the giver is. It’s definitely not something you can expect from that practical bargain-hunter person in your life.